Adobe Scan: the free app for professional PDF scans

Adobe Scan is one of the most powerful free scanning apps available for iPhone and Android. The app turns your smartphone into a full-fledged document scanner that converts paper documents into high-quality PDF files. With advanced features such as automatic text recognition and seamless integration with other Adobe products, this is a must-have app for anyone who regularly digitizes documents.

What makes Adobe Scan special?

Adobe Scan stands out from other scanning apps through its combination of ease of use and advanced technology. The app uses artificial intelligence to detect and crop documents automatically. As soon as you point the camera at a document, the app automatically recognizes the edges and takes a photo at the perfect moment.

One of the biggest advantages is the built-in OCR technology (Optical Character Recognition). This feature converts the text in your scanned documents into searchable and selectable text. This means you can later search your PDFs for specific words or phrases, and copy and paste text into other applications.

The integration with Adobe Document Cloud and Adobe Acrobat makes managing your scanned documents especially easy. Scans are synced to the cloud automatically, so you can open them on all your devices. You can also share documents directly from the app via email, WhatsApp or other apps.

Downloading and setting up Adobe Scan

Installing on iPhone

Open the App Store on your iPhone and search for 'Adobe Scan'. Download the app and open it after installation. You need an Adobe ID to use the app. If you don't have an Adobe account yet, you can create one for free with your email address, Google account or Facebook account. After you log in, the app asks for permission to use your camera, which is of course necessary for scanning.

Installing on Android

For Android users, Adobe Scan is available in the Google Play Store. The installation process is similar to iOS. Find the app, install it and log in with your Adobe ID. Make sure you accept the requested permissions, in particular access to the camera and storage.

Scanning your first document

Scanning a document with Adobe Scan is intuitive and fast. Start the app and point the camera at the document you want to scan. The app automatically detects the edges of the document and shows a blue frame around the detected area. When the document is properly in view, the app takes a photo automatically, or you can tap the shutter button manually.

After making the scan, you can adjust the corners if the automatic detection was not perfect. Drag the corner points to the right position for a neatly cropped result. You can also apply filters to improve the contrast or convert the scan to black and white for better readability.

If you want to scan multiple pages, tap 'Add another page' and repeat the process. All pages are combined into a single PDF document. When you are done, tap 'Save PDF' to finish the document.

Advanced features of Adobe Scan

Automatic text recognition (OCR)

Adobe Scan automatically runs OCR on all your scanned documents. This process takes place after you have saved the scan and can take a moment depending on the amount of text. Once the OCR is complete, you can select, copy and search the text in the document. This is especially useful for archiving large numbers of documents.

Different scan modes

The app offers different scan modes that are optimized for specific document types. The standard 'Document' mode works great for most paper documents. There is also a 'Whiteboard' mode, designed specifically for capturing whiteboards and flip charts, with extra contrast enhancement. The 'Form' mode is optimized for scanning filled-in forms.

Editing and rearranging pages

After scanning, you can change the order of pages by dragging them. You can also delete, rotate or re-crop individual pages. These editing options are especially useful if you made a mistake while scanning or if pages were scanned in the wrong order.

Saving and sharing scans

Adobe Document Cloud

By default, all your scans are saved to Adobe Document Cloud automatically. You get 5 GB of free storage with your Adobe account. From the cloud, you can open your documents on any computer or mobile device where you are logged in with your Adobe ID. This makes it easy to start documents on your phone and continue editing them later on your computer.

Exporting to other locations

You can also export scans to other storage locations. The app supports direct export to Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive and other cloud storage services. You can also save documents locally on your phone or share them directly via email or messaging apps.

Adobe Scan: the free versus the premium version

The free version of Adobe Scan offers all the basic features most users need: unlimited scanning, automatic OCR and storage in Adobe Document Cloud. However, premium features are also available through an Adobe Acrobat subscription.

With a premium subscription, you get access to advanced PDF editing features such as combining multiple documents, adding signatures and converting PDFs to Word or Excel. For most home users, however, the free version is more than enough.

Tips for the best scan quality

To get the best result with Adobe Scan, pay attention to a few things. Make sure there is enough light and avoid shadows on the document. Hold your phone straight above the document for the least distortion. Place documents on a contrasting background so the edges are detected well.

When scanning multiple pages, consistency is important. Try to scan all pages under the same lighting conditions for a uniform result. If you scan books or magazines, press the pages as flat as possible, but don't force anything to avoid damage.

Solving common problems

Sometimes the app doesn't detect the document properly. This is usually caused by poor lighting or a background that looks too much like the document. Try a different background or improve the lighting. If automatic detection keeps failing, you can take a photo manually and crop it afterwards.

If the OCR quality is disappointing, check whether the scan is sharp enough. Blurry scans lead to poor text recognition. In that case, make a new scan with better focus and lighting.

Frequently asked questions

Is Adobe Scan completely free to use?

Yes, Adobe Scan is free to download and use. You get unlimited scanning, automatic OCR text recognition and 5 GB of free cloud storage. Only advanced PDF editing features require a paid Adobe Acrobat subscription.

Do I need an Adobe account for Adobe Scan?

Yes, you need a free Adobe ID to use Adobe Scan. You can create an account with your email address or log in with your Google or Facebook account. Creating an Adobe ID is free.

Does the text recognition in Adobe Scan also work for Dutch text?

Yes, Adobe Scan supports OCR in more than 25 languages, including Dutch. The app automatically recognizes the language of the document and applies the right text recognition.

How much free storage do I get with Adobe Scan?

With a free Adobe ID, you get 5 GB of storage in Adobe Document Cloud. This is enough for thousands of scanned documents. You can also export scans to other cloud storage services if you need more space.

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